15Senior Pop OutsOur Warriors are going far ... let’s hear aboutsome with unique adventures!Maya Petrash“I am going to be playing Division 1 soccer at Towson University. I think I’m most excited to be able to playthe sport I love with my new teammates. I went to a lot of schools and played in front of different coaches, butevery one I went to didn’t feel right. Towson was never on the top of my list only because it was so close tohome and I thought I wanted to be farther, but once I was on campus and met the team and coaches, I knewthat I could see myself there. But what most drew me to Towson was how everyone on the team truly caredabout one another and how the coaches cared about each player.”Max Gross“I will be attending the University of North Dakota and plan to major in Commercial Aviation. I choseit because I believe it will provide me with the best future opportunities. I’m looking forward to continuingflight training and the path to become a commercial airline pilot. I also chose UND because when I touredthe school, the facilities, resources, and community was the strongest out of the schools I toured. It has establishedpartnerships with the major airlines as well. I believe UND was the right choice for me becauseI wanted to gain new experiences that I couldn’t get close to home.”Stephanie Rinelli“Starting this fall, I will attend Johnson & Wales University (JWU), one of the top culinary schools in thecountry. I plan to major in Baking & Pastry Arts and Food & Beverage Industry Management throughthe 2+2 program, completing two years in each area and graduating with both an associate and bachelor’sdegree. Baking has always been my passion, and I’ve built my own business around it. While meetingJustice Ketanji Brown Jackson, she told me about Johnson and Wales University and their culinary programand I realized there was a way that I could turn my passion into a career while going to a 4 year college.JWU’s 2+2 program will help me grow my skills and prepare to one day open my own bakery.”Will Pugh“I am attending St Mary’s College of Maryland as a monument scholar which means I made the top 10% ofapplicants for the year. I am planning on a double major in mathematics and either marine biology or generalenvironmental science. Part of the marine biology and environmental science program is a trip to Australiatowards your senior year to study the Great Barrier Reef which I am very much looking forward to. Whatdrove me to my decision to attend St Mary’s was their amazing environmental science and marine biologyprograms as they are right along the bay making it perfect for field research, another key factor in my decisionwas the beautiful campus and the woods/nature surrounding it which is something I truly enjoy. I would notbe surprised if people could find me taking nature walks or laying down in the fields by the river when Iattend.”
16The Warrior • EntertainmentMay 14, 2026Does He-Man Still Have The Power?by Kenzy Duda ‘28Masters of the Universe willbe released in theaters on June 5.It’s based on the 1983 cartoon ofthe same name. It follows Adam,Prince of Eternia, who receivesthe magical Sword of Power.Fabulous secret powers wererevealed to him the day he heldaloft his magic sword and said“By The Power Of Grayskull, IHave The Power!” He keeps hisdual identity secret from mostothers. Adam gains incredibleabilities as He-Man, includinglevels of strength comparable toSuperman. His pet tiger is knownas Cringer and shares some of themagic during Adam’s transformationto become Battle Cat, whomAdam rides. He-Man and BattleCat spend their days fightingagainst the skull-faced Skeletorand his army of villains.The movie is the second liveaction adaptation of He-Man andthe Masters of the Universe andwill star Nicholas Galitzine asHe-Man and Jared Leto as Skeletor.The movie will follow Adamas he tries to leave Earth and goback to Eternia, in order to savehis home from Skeletor.Other characters from the showwill also appear, like evil sorceressEvil-Lyn and royal soldierTeela.Many reactions to the teasertrailers have been positive. However,some criticism was aimedat the fact that the film focuseslargely on He-Man on Earth, aswell as trying to mesh too heavilywith the real world. The CGIvisuals were also a sore spot forsome. A new official trailer, releasedon March 31, showed offmore of the action elements of themovie, including several battlescenes. The first live-action filmadaptation of He-Man (releasedin 1987) did not perform wellcritically, earning a 21 percentscore on Rotten Tomatoes. However,early opinions suggest thenew movie will not have the samefate.Another 1980s cartoon thatmay receive a movie is ThunderCats.This show was abouta group of humanoid cat peopleescaping their dying planet andlanding on the planet of ThirdEarth where they battled againstMumm-Ra, the Mutants, and variousother villains. Adam Wingard,known for films like Godzillavs. Kong, is the director attachedto a possible film, but most of therecent articles or updates on thismovie come from 2024, so it’sunclear how much progress ishappening (if any) on that movie.Among the limited remarks thatWingard made about the possiblemovie was the fact that hewanted to blend live-action andanimation in a never before seenway. The lack of clarity in thestatement gives the impressionthat not much is concrete aboutthis film. If the He-Man movie issuccessful, it may provide an incentiveto give a little boost to theThunderCats movie.But what this really meansis that 1980s cartoons are makinga comeback in pop culture.He-Man generally has name recognitionamong younger audiencesthese days, in part due to themultiple cartoon spinoffs it hasreceived, like the Revelations andRevolution spinoffs in 2021 and2024 respectively, as well as the2021 3D animated cartoon. Thismakes it more likely that the filmwill pull in young and old fansTicket Master Accused of Being a Monopolyby Maya Dorsam ‘27No one is more familiar withsacrifice than a committed musicfan hoping to get tickets to seetheir favorite artist live in concert.Concert-goers quickly grow acquaintedwith the harsh reality ofentering the “Ticketmaster war.”Yes, war is an accurate word todescribe the process.Securing tickets is not for theweak, especially if you happento be a fan of a popular artist. Itentails creating a Ticketmasteraccount, finding presale information,rearranging your scheduleto be in line for the presale inadvance to the actual designatedtime (often a weekday duringan inconvenient time), prayingyou’re close to the front of therandomly assigned line, beingdisappointed once presale ticketsare sold out, joining the generalpublic sale at another time a fewdays later, praying again, seeingyou’re 50,000th in line, waitingas the tickets sell out in 5 minutes,and wallowing in sadness afterfailing to get the 400 dollar plustickets.Artists often have very littlecontrol over such factors thatprevent some of their biggest fansfrom attending their concerts.Ticketmaster amps up pricesbased on demand as tickets golive, something known as dynamicpricing. It also controls primaryand secondary ticket sales,oftentimes holding back ticketsfor other markets such as resale,creating even higher prices.This all traces back to themerger of Live Nation Entertainment,Inc. and Ticketmaster in2010. Through the partnership,a dominant industry power wasborn with vast control over concertpromotion, primary ticketing,and venue management. Now, theduo faces huge antitrust lawsuits.Thirty-two states, along with theD.C., are collaborating to carryout legal punishment for themonopoly, which they argue hasbeen created by crushing economiccompetition in the businessand making it difficult forfans to acquire access to events.A recent settlement resolvedthe Department of Justice’s’s caseat the federal level, which beganin May of 2024 under the BidenAdministration and keeps LiveNation and Ticketmaster relativelyclear to continue their monopolyunder the Trump Administration.It simply puts limitations onits operation, such as opening theplatform for other rival ticketingcompanies to sell directly throughGoogle ImagesNicholas Galitzine plays He-Man in the new movie Masters of the Universe.the site, limiting their ability tolock down venues for events, anddivesting a group of amphitheaters.A $280 million fund wascreated to settle state funds anddamages as a part of the DOJ settlement,but it remains dependenton states’ willingness to acceptthe settlement. A group of sevenagreed, composed of Arkansas,Iowa, Mississippi, Nebraska,Oklahoma, South Carolina, andSouth Dakota. The remainingstates refused the settlement,arguing that it does not go farenough to limit the powerful monopoly.They continue to seeka more extensive remedy to thecase, and event-goers hope theycome out successful.A common demand amongstates is the forced separation ofTicketmaster and Live Nation,along with compensation for consumerswho became victims of“double-dipping” fees. Anotherhuge issue the states seek to abolishis the alleged threat of venueslosing access to artists if they refuseto use Ticketmaster for ticketingservices.The pursuit of justicecontinues for states as theydemand greater accountability byLive Nation and Ticketmaster ina massive collaborative antitrustlawsuit against the companies.Acting Carries ‘The Drama’by Kaitlyn Nardo ‘28The Drama, written and directedby Kristoffer Borgoli, isboth intriguing and surprising.Despite trailers that suggest aquirky romantic comedy, themovie ends up being much darkerand messier. The Drama makesyou uncomfortable in a way youcan’t look away from while expressingdark themes that induceanxiety in viewers.The story begins with a movie-perfectmeet-cute betweenCharlie Thompson, played byRobert Pattinson, and EmmaHarwood, played by Zendaya.The story quickly moves to uncomfortablequestions of theirlove and whether people can trulymove on from the worst parts ofsomeone’s past. The movie opensas Charlie awkwardly approachesEmma in a coffee shop, their relationshipquickly sparking withchemistry. Their connection isquickly established, making theimpending trouble even more jarring.During a drunken pre-weddingdinner game, the couple andtheir friends, Mike (MamoudouAthie) and Rachel (Alana Haim),reveal the worst things they’veever done. Emma’s confessionbecomes the central narrativeof the movie, spiraling her relationshipwith Charlie into chaos,and also straining the relationshipsshe’s built with family andfriends because of her attempts tocover up her past.The Drama’s transformationinto a dark comedy questions thelimits of unconditional love. Borgliuses discomfort as a narrativedevice and paradoxically as alsoa source of humor. The Dramaforces viewers to question whethersomeone should be defined bytheir past, as well as whether aperson should stay with someoneafter learning something deeplydisturbing about them.However, the movie’s ambitionoften outpaces its execution.In several instances, the charactersbehave in unrealistic ways.Especially with Emma even aftera big confession scene, her characterreceives less focus than youwould expect. Instead, lots ofscreen time goes into Charlie’sunraveling, leaving the emotionalelements of Emma’s character outof the movie.From an acting standpoint,Zendaya and Pattinson carry thefilm with excellent performancesthat inject emotion back into thecharacters that the script left out.Zendaya navigates her characterwith an intensity that makesthe viewer feel her emotionsand reveal an authentic sense ofhypocrisy to her character. Zendayaembodies an attractive yetawkward young woman who isunsure of herself, yet still has anassertive trait. Pattinson plays acharming British museum curatorwho matches Zendaya’s intensity,giving these characters a dynamicbelievability.The Drama lives up to itsname as a dramatic and emotionalrollercoaster. It truly is a moviethat makes you think. From insaneplot twists to dramatic confessions,the movie is never boring,even if it doesn’t totally holdin its character development.GRADE: BFidget Trend Contributesto Wasteful Consumerismby Matilda Hawkins ‘27Fidget toys are not a newidea nor trend but recently, due toTikTok and other platforms, theirpopularity has soared. The mosthyped one recently has been Nee-Dohs, which is a brand of squishyfidget toys. NeeDohs come in alldifferent shapes and sizes, someappearing as simple cubes andothers shaped like a gumdrop.Their trendy popularity signifiedmass consumerism in which purchasingthese fidget toys is an endin itself.When trends like these occur,they lead individuals to purchaselarge amounts of the products.People overconsume them, whichcan be detrimental for severalfactors. Specifically in this case,influencers have started buyingthe fidgets in bulk and sellingthem out in major national retailersin one trip. Seeing these peoplebuy the products in bulk, individualsare starting to overspendand overconsume these productsthat don’t need to be purchasedfrequently. It causes short-termexcitement from the purchasesthat fades quickly into nothing.The environment also suffersfrom fidgets’ popularity. Whentrends like this die down, many ofthese products will just end up inlandfills or as litter. Furthermore,overproduction of products canlead to more pollution and carbonemissions, and in a world wherethat is already a severe issue,these toys can have severe consequenceson the environment.NeeDohs specifically are made ofsynthetic materials that build upand aren’t recyclable. They alsohave a short lifespan, easily beingpopped, torn, or drying out, leadingto people buying new ones,which increases waste. The overconsumptionof these products isa significant issue, and whether ornot the products themselves areinherently useful is up for debate.Due to their popularity, manystudents have begun bringingthem to school purportedly tohelp them focus. However, thereis a small number of individualsfor whom these toys truly benefitand can properly serve their therapeuticpurpose. While intendedfor individuals with ADHD orintense anxiety, many who maynot need fidgets use them distractivelyfor themselves and forthose around them in classes.Many people are just buying theproducts for the “trend” and notto actually use them for their legitimatepurpose.
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